By COLlive reporter
Midwood is the latest neighborhood to fall under the Brooklyn Chamber of Commerce’s growing portfolio known as the Neighborhood Entrepreneurship Program.
One initiative is a map for shoppers highlighting stores throughout Midwood. The shop local campaign is part of the newly-created “I Invest” Program, and will serve as a catalyst for economic development throughout the neighborhood.
Another is a 3-month street cleaning pilot program aimed at cleaning up Midwood and making it a destination for shoppers from across Brooklyn and New York. It is sponsored by Investors Bank with additional support from TD Bank.
The pilot program calls for cleaning areas near street corner garbage cans; weekly Monday clean-ups along major streets; and clearing of debris from under elevated subway tracks on Avenue M and East 15 Street, as well as Avenue J and East 16 Street.
Carlo A. Scissura, President & CEO of the Brooklyn Chamber of Commerce, noted that “all the borough’s neighborhoods are created equal. Clean streets are a catalyst for small business growth, ensuring that residents and visitors alike make walking these streets an enjoyable experience. Therefore, it is imperative that everyone work together to ensure the streets are clean and safe.”
Scissura unveiled the program at a reception that included local business owners and elected officials such as Councilman David Greenfield and the Chamber’s Project Manager for Economic Development Avi Leshes, a resident of Crown Heights.
Taking an interest in helping make Midwood a cleaner and more friendly place to conduct business are also a few Lubavitchers who own and operate businesses in the neighborhood.
They include Zalman Wuensch of Wolf and Lamb, Pinny Teller of Legaacy, Schneur Harel of Sushi Tokyo, Shloimy Eichler of Eichler’s Judaica and others.
A hotline will also be created to allow merchants to call if they see debris and wish to have clean-up crews dispatched to the area.
The response comes in the wake of a recent report released by the Mayor’s Office of Operations showing that Community Board 12 streets, which encompass the areas of Midwood, Borough Park and Kensington, were listed as only 82.8% acceptable. By comparison, many other Brooklyn neighborhoods, for example, scored in the high 90s.
The Chamber is active in nine areas: 13th Avenue in Dyker Heights, Fourth Avenue in Park Slope/Sunset Park, Seventh Avenue in Park Slope, South Williamsburg, Red Hook, Sheepshead Bay and North Crown Heights.
The Jewish area of Crown Heights, which does not have an active merchant association, can use a clean up as well.
The neighborhood’s streets have been ranked among the dirtiest in Brooklyn, according the mayor’s office recent ratings. The scores are based on street and sidewalk cleanliness throughout the entire city.
Check out Utica Avenue btwn Eastern Pkwy. and Crown St., approx.
Plenty of litter.
Police dept. doesn’t enforce litter laws.
The alleys are private property. The City is not responsible to plow them. Official Sanitation policy is not to send the trucks into the alleys when there is a lot of snow and ice there. Residents need to bring the garbage to the front of their homes when the alleys are impassible.
They left numerous bags on top of the snow, when I ran over to the truck with it, when they were two houses down already they tried to refuse it,claiming it was frozen, which it wasn’t. They wouldn’t let me add it to the piles they were picking up there, and said in a threatening way “you are littering!” I said, no, you are not letting me put it on the truck! The bags and snow and sanitation men were blocking me from getting over to the truck. No recycle pickup for over an entire week, with the latest snow,… Read more »
So many kosher wrappers and chip bags floating around our streets. It’s a chillul Hashem and just gross. It’s a joint effort- not just businesses but passersby should stop littering!
Since our new mayor came into office the garbage pick up has been horrible.. yes we had a lot of snow but that can’t be the reason why the garbage wasn’t picked up this this morning! Or this past Monday morning! I can’t believe this is happening without an uproar?
How about getting the garbage picked up from the alleys in a timely manner. It’s not always delayed because of snow.
i spy frank mt little brother have fun
xoxo
Loki